NY State Senate Bill 2013-S1775

Senate Bill S1775

2013-2014 Legislative Session

Prohibits an owner from adjusting the amount of preferential rent upon the renewal of a lease

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Housing, Construction And Community Development Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2014	referred to housing, construction and community development
Jan 09, 2013	referred to housing, construction and community development

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2013-S1775 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A5473
Current Committee:: Senate Housing, Construction And Community Development
Law Section:: Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 1974
Laws Affected:: Amd §10, Emerg Ten Prot Act of 1974; amd §26-511, NYC Ad Cd
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2009-2010: S2251, A465
2011-2012: S448, A1364
2015-2016: S2828, A3809
2017-2018: S3712, S6527, A741, A6285
2019-2020: S2845, A1509, A4349
2021-2022: A5770

2013-S1775 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Prohibits an owner from adjusting the amount of preferential rent, rent charged and paid by the tenant which is less than the legal regulated rent for the housing accommodation, upon the renewal of a lease; only allows the owner to make such adjustments upon a vacancy which is not the result of the failure of the owner to maintain a habitable residence.

2013-S1775 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                BILL NUMBER:S1775

TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the emergency tenant protection act of
nineteen seventy-four and the administrative code of the city of New
York, in relation to the regulation of rents

PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:  To prohibit an owner from adjusting
the amount of preferential rent upon the renewal of a lease.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:  Subdivision a-2 of section 10 of
section 4 of chapter 576 provides that where the amount of rent
charged to and paid by the tenant is less than the legal regulated
rent for the housing accommodation, the amount of rent for such
housing accommodation may only be increased to the previously
established regulated rent, as adjusted by all applicable guidelines
increases and other increases authorized by law; provided, however,
that such vacancy shall not be caused by the failure of the owner or
an agent of the owner to maintain the housing accommodation in
compliance with the statutory warranty of habitability. The law is
also deletes provisions that permit an owner to abandon a preferential
rent upon renewal of a lease.

JUSTIFICATION:  As housing costs increase exponentially across the
city of New York, the displacement of working families and middle
class residents from rent regulated apartments has reached crisis
proportions. Without question, the displacement is aggravated by the

ability of landlords to abandon a preferential rent upon the renewal
of a lease.

Prior to a change in law, a preferential rent was permanent for the
duration of a tenancy, and could only be increased upon vacancy.
However, as a result of an unfortunate provision inserted into the law
during the eleventh hour in 2003, landlords are now permitted to
abandon a discounted, preferential rent and impose the statutory rent
upon vacancy or renewal of a lease. Pursuant to this provision,
tenants throughout New York city have faced sudden, unanticipated and
staggering rent increases upon lease renewal, often forcing them out
of rent-regulated apartments.

Equally problematic, there is no "clean hands" requirement that the
landlord conduct itself responsibly in order to abandon a preferential
rent and impose the maximum rent upon a vacancy.  Consequently, if a
tenant leaves an apartment that is uninhabitable due to lack-of heat
hot water, electricity, repairs or sanitary conditions, the landlord
remains eligible to dramatically increase the rent upon vacancy of an
apartment. As a result, current law encourages bad actors to deprive
tenants of a habitable apartment in order to benefit from the ability
to abandon a preferential rent.

In order to stem the displacement crisis in New York City, and
preserve the affordable housing stock that remains available to
working families and moderate-income residents, the rent regulation
laws are in need of comprehensive reform. Substantial modification of
the preferential rent provisions is an important step in that
direction.


PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:  2009-2010; S.2251/A.465-A 2011-2012:
S.44-8

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE & LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:  None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:  This act shall take effect immediately.

2013-S1775 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  1775

                       2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                               (PREFILED)

                             January 9, 2013
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sens. KRUEGER, DIAZ, HASSELL-THOMPSON, HOYLMAN, PERALTA,
  PERKINS, SERRANO, STAVISKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Housing, Construction  and
  Community Development

AN  ACT  to amend the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seven-
  ty-four and the administrative code  of  the  city  of  New  York,  in
  relation to the regulation of rents

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Subdivision (a-2) of section 10 of section 4 of chapter 576
of the laws of 1974, constituting the emergency tenant protection act of
nineteen seventy-four, as amended by section 13 of part B of chapter  97
of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
  (a-2)  Provides  that  where the amount of rent charged to and paid by
the tenant is less than the legal regulated rent for the housing  accom-
modation, the amount of rent for such housing accommodation which may be
charged [upon renewal or] upon vacancy thereof may, at the option of the
owner,  be  based upon such previously established legal regulated rent,
as adjusted by [the most recent] ALL applicable guidelines increases and
other increases authorized by law; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT SUCH  VACANCY
SHALL  NOT  BE  CAUSED  BY  THE  FAILURE OF THE OWNER OR AN AGENT OF THE
OWNER, TO MAINTAIN THE HOUSING  ACCOMMODATION  IN  COMPLIANCE  WITH  THE
WARRANTY  OF  HABITABILITY  SET  FORTH IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION TWO
HUNDRED THIRTY-FIVE-B OF THE REAL PROPERTY LAW.   Where,  subsequent  to
vacancy,  such  legal  regulated  rent,  as  adjusted by the most recent
applicable guidelines increases and any other  increases  authorized  by
law is two thousand dollars or more per month or, for any housing accom-
modation  which  is  or becomes vacant on or after the effective date of
the rent act of 2011, is two thousand five hundred dollars or  more  per
month,  such housing accommodation shall be excluded from the provisions

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                           LBD00402-01-3

S. 1775                             2

of this act pursuant to paragraph thirteen of subdivision a  of  section
five of this act.
  S  2.  Paragraph 14 of subdivision c of section 26-511 of the adminis-
trative code of the city of New York, as amended by section 14 of part B
of chapter 97 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
  (14) provides that where the amount of rent charged to and paid by the
tenant is less than the legal regulated rent for  the  housing  accommo-
dation,  the  amount of rent for such housing accommodation which may be
charged [upon renewal or] upon vacancy thereof may, at the option of the
owner, be based upon such previously established legal  regulated  rent,
as  adjusted  by the most recent applicable guidelines increases and any
other increases authorized by law; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT SUCH  VACANCY
SHALL  NOT  BE  CAUSED  BY  THE  FAILURE OF THE OWNER OR AN AGENT OF THE
OWNER, TO MAINTAIN THE HOUSING  ACCOMMODATION  IN  COMPLIANCE  WITH  THE
WARRANTY  OF  HABITABILITY  SET  FORTH IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION TWO
HUNDRED THIRTY-FIVE-B OF THE REAL PROPERTY LAW.   Where,  subsequent  to
vacancy, such legal regulated rent, as adjusted by [the most recent] ALL
applicable  guidelines  increases  and any other increases authorized by
law is two thousand dollars or more per month or, for any housing accom-
modation which is or becomes vacant on or after the  effective  date  of
the  rent  act of 2011, is two thousand five hundred dollars or more per
month, such housing accommodation shall be excluded from the  provisions
of this law pursuant to section 26-504.2 of this chapter.
  S  3.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
the amendments to section 10 of the emergency tenant protection  act  of
nineteen  seventy-four  made  by section one of this act shall expire on
the same date as such act expires and shall not affect the expiration of
such act as provided in section 17 of chapter 576 of the laws  of  1974;
and provided, further, that the amendments to section 26-511 of the rent
stabilization  law of nineteen hundred sixty-nine made by section two of
this act shall expire on the same date as such law expires and shall not
affect the expiration of such law as provided under  section  26-520  of
such law.

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